


Boys will be boys

by Myrsky



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-20
Updated: 2015-06-20
Packaged: 2018-04-05 07:52:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4171863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myrsky/pseuds/Myrsky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The thing none of them had expected when they started the fight with Amora was the possibility of any of this going so wrong. Because, yes, fighting her and the Executioner is something always hard, always challenging, and damn magic but... the worst of all is that nothing looks wrong until they arrive to the tower and Jarvis locks everything down before opening the Iron Man's suit.</p>
<p>“What on hell?!” Clint is the first to react, turning to his left as something small runs to hide behind a couch.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Boys will be boys

The thing none of them had expected when they started the fight with Amora was the possibility of any of this going so wrong. Because, yes, fighting her and the Executioner is something always hard, always challenging, and damn magic but... the worst of all is that nothing looks wrong until they arrive to the tower and Jarvis locks everything down before opening the Iron Man's suit.

“What on hell?!” Clint is the first to react, turning to his left as something small runs to hide behind a couch.

“Jarvis?” Natasha asks, her voice completely suspicious. She slowly walks closer to the couch.

“I kindly ask you to step away from the couch, Miss Romanov.” Jarvis' cold voice answers, closing the suit behind them and taking it away.

“What's wrong?” Bruce asks, looking at the ceiling “What happened to Tony?”

As if on cue to Bruce's words a small head pops from behind the couch, peeking quickly before ducking again. “Why you know my name?” The childish voice asks, just a note of fright behind it, trembling just so lightly. It makes all the avengers take a step back, because a child has no rights to sound so suspicious.

“Tony?” A new voice asks, kinder than all the others “I'd like to greet you, Tony.”

“Nope!” Child Tony makes the word sound exactly like the adult Tony, which would be completely hilarious if it wasn't because... Tony is actually a child.

“My name is Steve Rogers and I swear I'd never hurt you, Tony. Come out, please.”

“Like Cap?” Again, it's the same spelling but... the intonation is totally different, it's pure awe.

“Yes, Tony, I am Captain America.”

“Father found you?” The voice is slightly suspicious again “Where's he?”

“Howard isn't around, Tony.” Steve pauses, waiting for a reaction that doesn't really come “I need you to trust me, okay, buddy? Come out.”

“Where is Jarvis? I heard him 'fore.”

“I am here to serve you, Sir.” Jarvis' voice chimes in, as always.

“But where's here, Jarvis? I no see you.” The head peaks again, looking all around. They all can see it now, the small child with the longish dark brown hair, long enough to fall on his eyes, totally messed up and the same big brown eyes that adult Tony has. He looks no older than six.

“Sir, please, come out and greet the Avengers.”

“Nope! Where's everyone? And this is not home! And I still don't see you, they have kidnapped me and I won't talk to them!”

One of the Iron Man's suits enters the scene, crouching next to the couch and holding its hand to Tony. “I am here, young master.”

“Ohhhhhhh!” Tony gasps “This is cool! Father made it for you?”

“No. But I still would like to introduce you to the Earth's mightiest heroes, young master.”

Tony takes his hand and comes from behind the couch, looking at them in a inquisitive way. His thoughts are still speculative and this young version of Tony doesn't hide his emotions as well as the adult Tony. He is amazed and curious... and maybe a bit scared, but he is grabbing the hand of the Iron Man and he looks confident enough to greet them.

“Young master, they are the avengers. Agent Clint Barton” the suit gestures at the spy, currently sitting over the counter of the bar and smiling at Tony “and agent Natasha Romanov.” Natasha smiles brightly, waving at Tony. Tony frowns lightly at that and he actually looks up at the suit before waving back.

“Are they agents as aunt Pegs?”

“Yes, they are, just like Miss Carter. Mister Odinson is the mightiest warrior that ever set a foot on Earth. Doctor Bruce Banner,” the suit moves his arm to catch Tony's attention, because he is still eyeing Natasha “he will help you with anything you need at the workshop, while you stay here.”

“Stay?” Tony looks up at the suit, almost pleading. His voice is broken and he looks like he was about to start sobbing grossly now.

“Yes, young master. I'd be really grateful if you could stay here with Captain Rogers. He will keep you safe while I am gone.”

“For how long?”

“I can't tell for I don't know, young master. I will call you.”

Tony turns to look at Steve, evaluating the situation before nodding his agreement. He actually pulls the hand of the suit, making the Iron Man kneel to hug him tight before walking to Steve and standing next to him, crossing his arms and staying still in a way that older Tony never does.

“Stay safe, Jarv.”

“Thank you, young master, I will try to do so.”

Both the suit and Tony nod, as the suit leaves the room. Tony stays silent for a couple of seconds before saying, as blatantly as adult Tony would have done “I am hungry. Is any of you fixing that?”

“Come to my apartment, Tony. I will cook something for you. Do you like mac and cheese?”

“Yes!” Tony seems to beam at that, taking Steve's hand and tugging it, if only to release it a second later with a frown of determination – suddenly behaving like a grown up. “You cook as good as Jarv?”

“I don't think I am as great as Jarvis, but we can try to do it good, Tony.”

–

Steve is quite lucky – or perhaps Tony is the lucky one – that his apartment looks old enough to not to set any 'what is so wrong here?!' feeling on Tony. In fact, even before they got to the kitchen, Tony has complained trice about his house being so old and having such a granny style.

“Who is this?” Tony says after a quickly cooked dinner at the kitchen, poking the sleeping form of Bucky on the couch, wrapped in a blanket. “I want to watch TV, move.”

“Tony, no, don't do that! Don't wake him, it's rude!”

Bucky groans loudly, battling the hand away from his neck, as one of Tony's sharp fingers digs into the back of his neck disregarding Steve completely.

“Hi.” Tony says, as soon as Bucky opens one eye. “Who are you? You live with Captain America?”

“Yes, I live here, and who the fuck are you, kiddo?”

“Language!”

Tony giggles, however, pawing Bucky's cheek, still trying to make him move “I'm Anthony. Well, everyone calls me Tony, only father calls me Anthony. You still haven't answered.”

Bucky sits up quickly, still wrapped in the blanket, eyes open wide “Stevie?”

Steve makes some gestures behind Tony, wordlessly saying that he'll explain later.

“Your name is Steve too?” Tony squints his eyes, evaluating Bucky. He climbs on the couch, however, taking possession of the remote.

“James. But call me Bucky.”

“Okay. Now we watch TV, don't fall asleep.” Tony is sitting yogi style, not minding the stranger sitting next to him, going as far as for grabbing the chips that Bucky was eating before falling asleep.

Steve leaves them together, hurrying back to the common floor, completely unnoticed, to discuss with the others what can they do about the _problem_ that Tony is facing. Jarvis will tell them if something goes wrong, right?

–

“Your TV is old and ugly! It doesn't even have the good channels!” Tony complains five minutes later, after passing across all the channels at least once, and he _gives_ the remote to Bucky, actually, what he does is throwing it over his blanket. “You help me find a good doc.”

Bucky looks at the ceiling, silently praying for Jarvis to put on something that would quiet up Tony because the damn kid hasn't stopped talking for all the time, but when he takes his arm out of the blanket to grab the remote...

“ _Ohmygod._ ”

“What now?” Bucky groans again, somehow wanting to squeeze his hands around Tony's neck. Just to shut him up for a while. _Just for that_.

“You have a metal's arm!!!” Tony's hands are all over the metal, making Bucky pull away like the touch burnt. “Why you have a metallic arm?” Tony asks, still making grabby hands towards the arm.

“Because I lost mine.”

“Ow, sucks.” After saying that, he actually looks around, like trying to spot any adult who would chastise him for what he said. “Can I touch? Please?”

Bucky stays silent, looking at Tony – whose eyes have gone unbelievably big, he really looks like a small, pretty animal. It's the vulnerable look that adult Tony would never show. And it's shocking.

“Pretty please?”

Bucky sighs lightly before offering his arm to Tony. “Just be careful, okay?”

“No, duh.” Tony pauses and starts moving his hands as he speaks, just like adult Tony would “I promise I am good, I don't know what father told you but I can fix things, I built an engine two years ago, I won't break you arm.”

And Tony's small hands are indeed careful while touching the metal, trying to feel anything wrong with it. Bucky feels the strange need to hug the child, but that'd be weird as fuck, so he stays still. Tony is cooing and talking in quiet whispers to the arm and looks as relaxed as he wasn't before, so it doesn't take him long to fall asleep. Even asleep, he can still feel Tony's fingers poking his arm ever so lightly, turning things here and there.

–

Bucky wakes up an hour later, to Steve's firm hand on his shoulder. There is a steady weight on his other arm, the left, and he wonders if the arm has shut down again until he tilts his head to find Tony sleeping over it. The child has a cheek against the metal and is drooling lightly.

“I'll put him to bed. Go to sleep, Stevie.” Bucky yawns, wrapping his flesh arm around Tony to pick him up.

“I have been talking with the others, we have to talk too.” Steve looks damn serious, glancing at the sleeping form of Tony seemingly full of worry.

“Okay, wait for me then. But let me put the munchkin to bed, or else he'll get stuck to my arm.”

Bucky leaves the room with Tony pressed to his chest, carrying him to his own bed. When he kneels to drop him in the bed, Tony grabs him harder, fearing that he will fall, so Bucky drops him even more carefully.

“Nooo, dontcha go, stay.” Tony babbles while hugging his arm so hard that the only way to dislodge him would be to break his small arms.

“Fine, fine...”

Bucky lays down in the bed, pleading with his eyes to Jarvis, for Steve to come and save him from Tony. The only thing he hears, though, is a distant whisper in the living room ' _Sir has fallen asleep in Mr. Barnes' arms, you can talk to them in the morning, Captain._ '

–

When the nightmares hit him that night, he wakes up to a warm weight on his shoulder and a small hand on his neck.

“No more movin'. You gonna make me fall.”

Bucky can't avoid wrapping his arm around the child and pulling him to his chest. The child moves enough to press a wet kiss to his cheek, making all the fear from the nightmare fade.

“Sleep.” The sleepy voice commands, and Bucky can't do anything but obey.

It's surprisingly easy, sleeping with the child cradled in his arms.

It's crazy.

_It's perfect_.

–

“I like you. You are warm.” Tony says with a bright smile, throwing his body across Bucky's chest to pin him down as soon as Bucky wakes up. He is still tinkering with the arm, he has produced a screwdriver from somewhere. “Imma gonna fix your arm, so don't move.”

“It is not broken, Tony.” Bucky says, bit a hint of desperation. What if the child... what if Tony breaks his arm?

“But it's not as good as it could! Now, flex your fingers.” Bucky flexes the fingers, feeling them more agile than ever but still nervous when the child starts working on his wrist. The dawn has not come yet and he looks completely awake and active, this child Tony has completely different habits from the adult Tony even if their core is the same.

He stays still, allowing Tony to do as he pleases. The weight over his chest is comfortable and Tony isn't hurting him. Whatever he is doing, it's fine.

–

Tony's belly starts roaring in hunger, so Tony tugs his arm to get Bucky out of the bed – where he was pinning him in the first place – and he doesn't really release Bucky's hand.

“Breakfast?” Tony asks when he sees Steve, gesturing for Bucky to sit him over the counter. “I want cocoa. Make me cocoa?”

“Sure thing, Tony.” Steve says, smiling and making sure to prepare the beverage before turning to Bucky “We have good news. Thor has gone to find one of his friends who can fix this.”

“When?”

“You know how tricky the travel is. As soon as possible, whatever is that. So let's keep up, we're doing good. _You_ are doing good.”

Tony is eyeing between them, suspicious, but since he is drinking the warm cocoa, he can't say anything. It must be killing him, because he is quick to set the mug down on his lap to ask “What's wrong? I can fix it!”

Steve looks at Bucky before looking at Tony, his mouth hanging slightly open.

“It's the radio, Tony.” Bucky says, grinning at Steve. “Stevie here is a bit clumsy and he broke it.”

Tony drinks his cocoa quickly, producing his screwdriver from out of nowhere again to go and fix the radio.

“Wait, Tony, you have to eat!” Steve says, even though he is completely ignored by Tony.

–

They have breakfast later, after Tony has found three different ways to improve Steve's old radio, and Steve flicks Bucky's ear for that as soon as Tony is engrossed in his food.

Child Tony is surprisingly not a pick eater as his adult version, and he will eat as long as someone distracts him with conversation. He is being too well behaved.

Breakfast and lunch pass in a blink.

–

Bath time is something completely different.

Tony insists he is old enough to bathe on his own, but it ends up with Steve running after a stark naked and wet Tony in the living room while Bucky is cracked up in the couch.

It's amazing how Tony can outsmart the super soldier Steve, crouching under the furniture or running around the house. And Steve is only able to catch him when Tony almost trips over the table, because he stepped on a puddle.

“You dress him up!” Steve says, looking sweaty and exhausted and throwing a Tony wrapped in a towel on his lap.

Bucky looks at Tony, one eyebrow raised. “You don't have spare clothes, do you?”

“Nope.” Tony giggles.

“And where are the old ones?”

“Water. They are dirty!”

“Okay.” Bucky quietly sighs, towelling Tony dry before allowing him to run around the house wearing the towel, while he sets up the laundry.

–

It's weird, because a day and a half later he feels like he has spent more time of his life cuddling with a sleepy Tony in his arms than not doing it. His naps are no longer the time when Steve will stop trying to talk to him into doing things while he feels completely empty inside. Now it's the time when he has a warm bundle of Tony over his lap, and Tony hasn't stopped talking since then.

Even when he is asleep, he keeps babbling words that make no sense to anyone but him.

He is happy.

It is selfish, he knows. All the other Avengers are worried and they have tried to visit often but the only one who Tony really accepts around, apart from Bucky, is Bruce. The others Avengers want to make some tests on Tony, but Tony is basically glued to Bucky... and he is strangely glad by that

He still wants to strangle Tony sometimes, but he is incredibly happy since the child has tagged to him. Now he has someone who needs him and enjoys his company – which, yes, is exactly the same as Steve, but _it is not the same_ –.He doesn't want to think about Thor's friend coming to _fix this_ , but when he does, he just hugs Tony a bit closer.

–

Tony is quietly singsonging to himself in the bath when they arrive. Bucky can see the rainbow from the windows, hitting the top of the tower. Bucky goes to find Tony with adult clothes tucked in his arms.

“Tony?”

“Yeah?”

“Dress up with this,” Bucky says, giving the clothes to Tony and almost broken hearted. “I'll explain later.”

“They are your clothes?”

“Yes.”

“Fine, then.” Tony takes them with a smile, even if the hoodie covers him like a dress and he could get lost in the pants.

For the first time in three days, they go back to Tony's penthouse. Tony is holding his hand and looking exactly at lost because of the environment there. It doesn't look like he had processed how different the atmosphere is from the 70's before, because now he looks shocked.

“Friend Tony, meet my mother, Frigga!” Thor booms as soon as Tony enters the room.

“Your mum looks young.” Tony says, eyeing her. She opens his arms, though, and Tony looks up at Bucky before running to hug the golden woman. As much as he can run into the huge pants, anyway, it looks a big like a potato sack race. “Hi. I'm Tony.”

“Hello, Tony.” Frigga says, kissing his forehead. “I have come to meet you.”

“That's nice, but why?” Tony sounds suspicious again, even if he hasn't moved from the woman's arms.

“Because there's something to repair here. Sit down at the couch, please, Tony.” Her voice is sweet and Tony obeys, even if it's just because her intonation is so motherly that anyone would feel like a failure disobeying her words.

Tony looks at Bucky, and he knows the big doe eyes enough as for knowing that it is a plea for him to come and sit next to him. So Bucky does. And Tony takes his hand, holding it as tight as he can.

Frigga smiles at him before she starts drawing figures in the air with her fingers, golden sparks flying through the room. Then it all beams bright, like a bonfire.

Bucky can feel the couch dipping under all the extra weight, and how the hand holding his changes in shape but never releases him.

“Jarvis?” is the first thing that Tony says, as soon as the lights go off, looking up at the cameras.

“Yes, Sir?”

“Did you really take control of one of the suits to calm me?”

“Whatever needed, Sir. And welcome back.” Jarvis sounds proud, exactly as he should. Tony laughs, standing up to be embraced by the team.

–

Tony doesn't approach Bucky until later, after all the others have relaxed and stopped looking at Tony as if he was going to disappear. It's then when Tony takes Bucky's hand, exactly like the child had done the days before, walking him to the closest room before entwining their fingers.

“I like you. You are warm.” Tony says with a curiously shy smile. It can be taken in any way, even just as a joke to make Bucky know that he remembers the days.

“I like you too, Tony.”

“Just the kid me?”

“I don't know the adult you.” Bucky says, tucking his own hair away from his face, trying to cover his face behind his hand for as long as he can.

“I really _like_ you.” Tony follows his hand, cupping Bucky's cheek, leaning closer until they are nose to nose. “Just gimme a chance.”

Bucky hums and nods, closing the gap between their lips.


End file.
